It is well known in the prior art to provide connector systems for welding cable.
One common form of connector system is of the general type described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,702,539 (Cusick III, et al.), issued Oct. 27, 1987. In this type of connector system, a pair of connectors, said pair comprising a male connector and a female connector, is provided. Each connector includes a body and a sleeve. The body is constructed from electrically-conductive material, such as brass, and includes receiver means for securely receiving in electrically-conducting relation the end of a welding cable. The receiver means may take the form of a set screw arrangement. The sleeve is constructed out of electrically-insulative material, receives the body in snug-fitting relation, and is tubular, so as to provide access for the welding cable at one end, and to provide access to the body at the other end. The male connector has a conductive connector post projecting from its body, through the other end of its sleeve. The female connector has a socket formed in its body accessible through the other end of its sleeve. The post and the socket are adapted such that the post can be inserted into the socket to a position whereat the sleeves of the male and female connectors abut, thus defining an initial position of the connectors, and are further adapted, through the provision of suitable camming surfaces, such that rotation of the connectors from the initial position (i) draws the bodies of the male and female connectors against one another, thereby to permit electrical conduction therebetween, and, contemporaneously (ii) compresses the sleeves against one another, to provide frictional engagement therebetween. Such frictional engagement provides resistance to relative rotation of the connectors, thereby to resist disengagement.
This connector system is relatively inexpensive to manufacture, relatively durable and thus able to withstand heavy and continuous use, and has proven relatively useful. However, it suffers in that, over time, the various surfaces in the connectors can wear, thereby to reduce frictional engagement and render the connector system relatively more prone to inadvertent disengagement. This problem is most evident when the cables are strung in series up a scaffolding or the like, since the weight of the cables can cause the connectors to unscrew from one another and release, particularly when the junction between the connectors has become loose through wear.